â€œIt was a busy week in the Waikato, wasn’t it Libby? On Monday there was…â€

Like an arm sweeping flotsam and jetsam from a desktop, Henare Te Ua would sweep the formalities of the opening theme for his weekly programme Whenua on National Radio aside and launch into an hour of korero on matters Maori.

The veteran broadcaster, who died yesterday, was best-known for Whenua which ran for 7Â½ years on National Radio, with co-host Libby Hakaraia and, latterly, Alma Ma Ua.